§ Mr. Andrew Bowdenasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what proportion of acute and long-stay hospital beds are occupied by elderly people.
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§ Mr. John PattenThe proportion of occupied beds in National Health Service hospitals in England used by patients aged 65 and over in the acute, geriatric and psychiatric specialties are given in the table. Figures for the non-psychiatric specialties are estimates based on average daily occupancy during 1981 while the figure for the psychiatric specialties relates to 31 December 1981.
Proportion of occupied beds used by patients aged 65 and over England 1981 Specialty Percentage Acute* 43.9 Geriatric 95.9 Mental illness and mental handicap 39.8 * "Acute" is defined as all specialties other than geriatrics, younger disabled, obstetrics and GP maternity, mental illness and mental handicap.